Beer, Beer, & Better Beer

Interview: The lowdown on the WYCE-HopCat Blue Bridge Music Festival at ArtPrize Nine

Troy, Webmaster of the Universe | September 26, 2017

ArtPrize, Music

ArtPrize Nine is in full swing throughout downtown Grand Rapids, and HopCat is part of the action this year. We're sponsoring the second-annual Blue Bridge Music Festival, happening this Friday and Saturday, Sept. 29-30, on the blue pedestrian bridge over the Grand River.

For a full lineup of acts performing at the free event, check out the music page on ArtPrize's website. HopCat will be selling Crack Fries and Founders beer while observing the same sustainability practices - composting and recycling - that we use in our restaurants to divert 90 percent of the waste that would otherwise end up in a landfill.

Listen below as Troy performs some GOTCHA JOURNALISM on WYCE station manager Quinn Matthews and gets the REAL story. You know, the one "they" don't want you to know. (Actually, we want everyone to know.)

HopCat is excited to announce our sponsorship of this year’s second-annual Blue Bridge Music Festival, the official music component of ArtPrize Nine. The event, a collaboration with community radio station WYCE-FM (88.1) is set to unfold Friday and Saturday Sept. 29-30 on the blue pedestrian bridge over the Grand River in downtown Grand Rapids.

The free festival will feature performances by eight regional artists, all of whom are eligible for the ArtPrize Song of the Year award, which carries a $1,000 cash prize. In keeping with ArtPrize’s public-vote model, the prize will go to the artist who attracts the most support from visitors. The award format is pared down from last year’s inaugural Blue Bridge event, in which songs were divided by genre and also competed for judges’ awards.

The 2017 contestants, however, still are eligible in ArtPrize’s main field in the time-based category, which carries $12,500 prizes in both public voting and juried awards. The Song of the Year winner will be invited to perform at the ArtPrize Awards Ceremony, Oct. 6 at 20 Monroe Live.

HopCat is presenting the Song of the Year prize and will be on hand at the festival, selling Crack Fries and a few local beers from Founders Brewing Co. The same sustainability initiatives we practice in our restaurants also will be in effect -- all food products will be compostable and there will be readily accessible compost and recycling bins, with the goal of diverting at least 90 percent of waste that would otherwise go to a landfill.

Quinn Matthews, station manager at WYCE, curated the festival’s performers. ”I’m beyond excited as WYCE 88.1FM, HopCat and ArtPrize team up for the Blue Bridge Music Festival for 2017,” Matthews said in a statement. “West Michigan is filled with amazing art during this competition, and I feel it’s extremely important to show the visitors to our city what an amazing music scene we have here. Get ready for “A World of Music” on the Blue Bridge, all for FREE, celebrating Jazz, Soul, Rock, Country, Hip Hop and more for two straight days over the Grand River.”

WYCE, the long-running Grand Rapids Community Media Center station whose motto is “A World of Music,” will broadcast from the Blue Bridge Music Festival each day. The schedule of the event is as follows: